Cousiño-Macul, Valentin Bianchi and Catena—besides representing the royalty of the South American wine industry, these wineries share another common thread: Alfredo Bartholomaus. Unknown to most American wine drinkers, Bartholomaus and his company, Billington Imports, have been the driving force behind the wave of quality South American wine coming into the U.S. for nearly 20 years.

Bartholomaus’ career started innocently enough. While working as a waiter at the Sheraton Hotel in Washington, D.C., he got a call from his older brother, George, who worked in an advertising agency in Santiago, Chile. One of his clients, Don Carlos Cousiño, was interested in exporting wines to the U.S. and George wondered if Alfredo would test the waters in the U.S. Selling most of the first 3,000 cases out of the trunk of his car, Bartholomaus barely made enough for gas money. Bigger successes eventually followed smaller ones, and in 2003 Billington imported more than 300,000 cases of wine, mostly from Chile and Argentina.

The 61-year-old native Chilean has started laying the groundwork for the next generation at the Springfield, Va.-based company. His youngest son, Alex, has taken over the operation of Billington. The elder Bartholomaus, however, is not exactly in shuffleboard mode. Alfredo spends his time discovering new wines in far corners of the world and travels the country promoting Billington products.

Some things never change.

And this suits Alfredo just fine. He takes a long-term view of success. As he likes to say, he regretted every day during his first nine years in business. "That’s how long it took me to make the money that I made when I left the Sheraton. But, because I made the right decision at the wrong time, I was able to build relationships with the best families in Chile."

And relationships are the cornerstone to any successful importing company— relationships and hard work, that is. Bartholomaus remains busy in disparate regions such as New Zealand and Spain. Billington has also acquired Chapin Cellars, importers of Alsatian and German wines, to create a broader catalog of offerings.

Alfredo has a bittersweet reason to work hard as well. In February 2000, his wife Liliana lost her seven-year battle with breast cancer. As a tribute, sons Alex and Erik, with assistance from their father, launched 2 Brothers Big Tattoo Red wine. A portion of the proceeds from the debut 2001 vintage went to local cancer charities in each market where it was distributed. Nearly 14,000 cases later, 2 Brothers raised more than $83,000 for charity and ran out of wine. They sold 40,000 cases in 2003 and are projecting annual sales in the 150,000-case range in the next three years. Alfredo is in negotiations with firms in Canada and Europe, which have expressed an interest in starting similar programs there as early as this spring.

In October, Alfredo sat down with editor Gil Kulers in The Wine Report offices to
talk about the evolution of South American wines and issues beyond the wine business.

The Wine Report: Did you ever think 2 Brothers would become as big as it has?

Alfredo Bartholomaus: This is something that was not intended to get where it is today . . . Unfortunately, cancer is something that has touched many people. I feel that with 2 Brothers we are contributing something.

TWR: That must make you feel good.

AB: Yes, it’s a great feeling. Now, our South Carolina distributor is matching the $6 that we give [per case] with $3 of his own money. In this case, the money goes toward a children’s cancer fund. We try to match up with a local organization in each market. In Alabama, we donate to the University of Alabama-Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center. In Georgia, the money goes to Bosom Buddies, a 20-year-old support and education group for survivors of breast cancer. The association assists cancer victims with prosthetics and wigs. It also conducts support sessions in several different languages. In North Carolina the charity we chose was the Ronald McDonald House.

TWR: Where does 2 Brothers come from and who makes the wine?

AB: It comes from the Colchagua Valley in Chile. Alex does the blending. It is about 50 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 40 percent Syrah and 10 percent Merlot.

TWR: Where did you come up with the name Big Tattoo Red?

AB: My oldest son, Erik, is a tattoo artist. He designed the label for the wine using Liliana's favorite flower, the fleur-de-lys [also known as the blue iris].

TWR: What was the key to your earlier success?

AB: It was in middle of the ‘80s when people started the California Chardonnay revolution . . . As California wines became more popular, and in turn more expensive, people were looking for good, inexpensive wine. That’s when Cinderella wines like Catena Chardonnay were discovered in America . . . In the past, I used to thank God when I got up in the morning. Now, I thank God that California raised its prices for wine.

TWR: Why are South American wines such a value?

AB: The bottom line is that an average acre of land in Chile or Argentina is about
$5,000. Compare that against $80,000 or $100,000 in Napa and Sonoma.

TWR: What is the next hot wine trend?

AB: [Holding a glass of Catena Malbec] Malbec, the black gold of Argentina. What the tango and Evita didn’t do to put Argentina on the map, Malbec will. Malbec was brought into Argentina in the late 1800s. Through a hundred years of mutation and the different soil in Argentina, this Malbec became different than every other Malbec in the world. It originally came from Cahors, France. They used to put it in their wines to add color. Chile has Malbec, but it’s not the same as Argentina’s Malbec. If they can figure out their political and financial problems, wine production in Argentina could quadruple overnight. Mendoza [the heart of Argentina’s wine country] is only 10 to 15 percent planted.

Gil Kulers is the editor of The Wine Report.

To learn more about the Billington Portfolio of Wines, go to:
www.billingtonwines.com

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